One Day in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Only have one day to explore Philadelphia, Pennsylvania? Here is what we did in one day.
What We Did –
The night before arriving, we purchased the Go City pass for Philadelphia which allowed us to stop at a variety of museums for one price. We chose the 1 day All Inclusive Pass as we only had one day in the city. I would get this pass if you plan to stop at multiple places during one day and also want to ride the hop on hop off tour buses. If you have multiple days or are going to less places each day, you may want to consider the Explorer Pass or a multiday All Inclusive Pass. We really enjoyed having this pass and not having to worry about the cost of each museum we entered.
We arrived early in the morning and parked at the Philadelphia Museum of Art as we knew one of things we wanted to visit was the Rocky Steps and statue before they became too crowded. The kids were really into this as we had them watch the first Rocky movie before our vacation. After we did our run up the steps and took a photo with the statue, we continued on down the street and walked to the Liberty Bell. Later in the day when we walked by, the lines here were very long so we were glad we did this first.
The kids needed to use the restroom, so we decided to stop at the Franklin Institute as it was about opening time for the museum. The friendly staff let us use the restroom before the museum opened. There is a lot to do for the kids and it is very fun for kids. The Franklin Institute is included with the Go City Pass and all we had to do was show the bar codes for our Go City Pass to enter. My husband took one of our sons to the special Lego exhibit (which was an additional cost) while I explored with the other kids. Some of the highlights for the kids that I took were exploring the space area and driving virtual rovers, racing each other on an indoor track, simulated surfing, and going through the mazes. We kept this visit short as it’s similar to other children’s science museums we have visited and we wanted to focus more on the history for this particular trip. Even with that, we did spend over an hour at this museum but definitely could have spent the entire day as the kids really enjoyed all the hands on and science related activities.
Next, we continued our walk to the Liberty Bell. We waited in line for close to an hour. Keep this in mind, especially if you have young children. I suggest grabbing them something to eat and drink while in line to keep them occupied for a little while. Even in the morning, it was hot on the day we were there so make sure to have plenty to drink and sunscreen as you wait. There is not much shade as you wait to enter the building. Inside, there were many displays about the history of the Liberty Bell and a short video was playing to learn more about the Liberty Bell. Depending on how you want to use your time, you may want to try to get here earlier to avoid the long waits.
After the Liberty Bell, we went over to the hop on hop off tour station to pick up our Go City Philadelphia pass tickets for the bus. The process was easy and the tour station printed us paper tickets to show the bus driver for the hop on hop off busses that were accepted on all the hop on hop off tour buses. It is definitely worth riding the bus the whole way through especially if you only have one day in the city. The bus drivers provide a nice overview of the history and landmarks in the city and provide you with more ideas on how to spend your time in the city. Keep in mind that if there is a stop you want to make, take it when you get to it or you will need to start the whole tour over again on a new bus if you want to use the bus to get to that stop. So in this case, it is easier to just walk to your next location if you have missed your stop. If you sit on the top section of the double decker bus, you will also want to make sure to always be watching your surroundings. The buses come into contact with trees along the path.
The next stop we made was back to the Philadelphia Museum of Art. Included in the collection are Picasso, Monet, and Cassatt paintings among many others. The kids enjoyed the special chair exhibit that was happening during our visit. The kids also enjoyed walking through the Temple Hall. Before we entered, one of the workers gave the kids each an honorary sticker badge to be a protector of art and explained how they can help protect the art. The older kids could have spent the entire day viewing the different works of art but the younger two (ages 7 and 4) were ready to move on.
We decided to eat lunch at the museum since it was that time of day and there was a great variety of food being served, including freshly made Philly cheese steak sandwiches. There was also a variety of fresh fruit options which the kids enjoyed. This was a great choice for food that day for our family, however there is a stop on the bus that came highly recommended as a stop for lunch if you have more time than we did. It is called the Reading Terminal Market and we definitely will make this as a stop on our next tour of Philadelphia. If you are a fan of It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia, you may want to make a stop at Paddy’s Pub also. The hop on hop off tour points out this location too.
Then, we left and decided to get back on the bus to see a few more things and to give the kids a break from walking as they were extremely hot. We grabbed drinks from a vendor outside the bus stop before boarding. Our final stop of the day, ended up being at the Eastern State Penitentiary. The kids were much more fascinated with this tour than I expected. They enjoyed walking around with their headphone sets and following along and learning about the prison.
After our tour, it was past 5:00 pm. Unfortunately, most of the museums in Philadelphia are closed by this time so we were unable to visit any other museums. The kids were ready by this time though to leave the city and get back to enjoy our hotel’s swimming pool.
I definitely recommend visiting this city as it is full of history. A couple of days would be ideal but if you only have one day like we did, I hope this article helps you maximize your time in this wonderful city. I have listed my top 10 suggestions below on how to spend a day or couple of days in Philadelphia.
Here is my top 10 list of must dos on your visit to Philadelphia.
- Run up the Rocky Steps.
- Explore the Philadelphia Museum of Art.
- Visit the Liberty Bell
- Tour the Birthplace of the United States, Independence Hall.
- Grab some food at Reading Terminal Market.
- Visit Eastern State Penitentiary.
- Walk around or take a hop on hop off tour and enjoy the music, entertainment, and history the city offers.
- Eat a Philly Cheesesteak
- Explore Philadelphia’s Magic Gardens
- Take a train from Philadelphia to the Jersey Shore.
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Have you been to Philadelphia? What are your favorite things to do and see in this city? Share your experiences in the comments.